


That Shiver

by waterbird13



Series: Tumblr Fics [452]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Praise, Trust Issues, emotional walls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-31
Packaged: 2018-11-07 03:05:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11049984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waterbird13/pseuds/waterbird13
Summary: Tony likes praise. But you have to earn the ability to give it to him.





	1. Chapter 1

Bucky doesn’t know why it takes him so long to notice.

No, he knows why it does. Because he’s heard stories about Tony, from Steve, from Natasha, from Sam and Clint and Wanda and even Scott, and it seems like his stupid brain is intent on not dispelling those myths until actually forced to.

Yes, he knows Tony cares a lot about people. Tony’s not some guy carelessly wrecking his way through life. He’s dispelled the big myths and more about Tony in the time the man has let him hang around. They live in the same place, and Tony helped with BARF and helps him with the arm, and Bucky thinks he knows the man pretty well by now.

Somehow, he missed the fact that, despite what everyone says, Tony doesn’t brush off the harsh words of others. On the contrary. It sits and it simmers and hurts.

It really clicks one day in the lab. He’s at the bench, putting the arm through some fine-motor paces for FRIDAY to monitor, while Tony and Rhodey talk a few benches over.

Rhodey clasps Tony’s shoulder, rubs his thumb over the worn t-shirt for a second. “Thanks, Tones,” he says, voice warm. “You did great.”

It takes about fifteen seconds and Rhodey leaves when he’s done, off to go train, but Tony’s blushing a bit and smiling softly.

Bucky’s eyes narrow. He forgets to keep drawing stupid little spirals for a second.

Four days later, Pepper stops in to hand Tony a stack of paperwork approximately as thick as Bucky’s arm. Tony hands her a stack in turn, clearly read and signed. Pepper blinks, then flips through them. “Thanks, Tony,” she says. “I appreciate it.”

Tony smiles softly, ducking his head like it’s a secret.

The Spider-kid is rambling on as they walk into the room, gesticulating wildly with his free hand, the other hand clasped around some piece of technology. “–Never even thought of something this cool, it’s amazing, Mr. Stark, really, what you did is amazing, and showing me how to do it, just like that–I appreciate it,” he cuts off lamely, realizing he’s been rambling.

Tony’s smiling and blushing a bit. He says something in turn to the kid but Bucky’s not paying attention, watching the flush.

Tony likes–Tony likes the words, Tony lights up and glows and goes soft under praise. Tony flushes at even just being thanked for things.

There’s something to that that Bucky will have to think about later–like how Tony’s not feeling like that all the time, how it’s such a special, novel experience it still sets him blushing, considering how many amazing things Tony does every day, they should be constantly thanking him for the amazing things he does, extolling his virtues. But for now, Bucky thinks about the shy little head-ducked smile, the blush.

About ways to bring it out himself. About situations he could bring it out in. About how far that blush goes, and what will happen when he tells Tony how pretty he looks, blushing like that.

Next time he’s in the lab, he thanks Tony for the arm. “The work you’ve done, it’s amazing–don’t remember it ever being this good,” he says earnestly.

Tony does blush, but only a little. Mostly he looks at Bucky, confused, and Bucky isn’t sure where he went wrong, but he’ll have to think about it and try again.

Bucky compliments Tony on dinner that night. It’s pasta from a box and sauce from a jar and meatballs from the freezer, but it’s food on the table and it wouldn’t have gotten made if Tony didn’t do it. Tony eyes him curiously.

Now Bucky’s getting desperate. He’s failing. How can others make Tony blush and smile and duck his head so easily, draw out that happy, satisfied little reaction when Bucky, no matter how hard he tries, can’t?

“Your eyes,” he blurts out a day or so later, back in the lab, just the two of them. “Your eyes are really beautiful, doll. Just wanted you to know.”

Now Tony’s looking at him downright suspiciously. “What’s going on here, Bucky?”

“Can’t a guy give a compliment?”

Tony’s eyes narrow even further. “What do you want?”

“Nothing!” Bucky says, even if it’s not precisely true. Still, he’s not here fishing for money or tech or any of the things people might chase after Tony for usually. He just wants…

He wants Tony to blush like that for him, more for him than anyone else. Wants to draw it out as often as he can, make Tony feel that happy little blushy feeling. Wants to give that to him. Wants to know how to better than anyone else.

He wants Tony, really.

“Other people can say nice things to ya and you don’t give them the third degree,” Bucky pouts.

“Other people I trust.”

That feels like a slap in the face. “You don’t trust me?”

“I’m working on it,” Tony says defensively. “I don’t…it’s not on you, it’s on me, okay? I’m working on it but it’s taking some time, for all of you. I can’t just forget, even if in some cases I might want to. It doesn’t work like that.”

“And I can’t compliment you?”

“Compliments from people I trust are…” Tony seems unwilling to define his own feelings on them. “Nice. Compliments from other people? Historically, really great ploys to take advantage of trusting old me.”

Bucky sighs, but he gets it. “Okay,” he says. It’s disheartening, to know his fantasies and dreams are on hold, maybe permanent hold, but he will just have to wait. “Take your time,” he says. “I’ll be waiting to tell you every nice thing I’ve been thinking about you, whenever you’re ready. You just let me know if you want to hear it.”


	2. Chapter 2

Bucky starts to keep a notebook of all the things he wants to say to Tony but knows Tony doesn’t want to hear. Like how thankful he is when Tony spends four hours after a board meeting from hell fixing Bucky’s arm when it starts giving him electric shocks. Or how great Tony looks when he changes for a gala. He has more entries about Tony’s smile than he cares to count.

He’s waiting for Tony to tell him that they’re okay, that they’ve reached a place where Tony’s more comfortable. If they reach that place. He’s been waiting and he’s been patient and he hasn’t slipped, not once, not until today.

Steve’s in the hospital bed, and they’ve got him on enough drugs that even he’s a little loopy. He’s banged up and his leg is broken in three places, but he’s going to be okay. It could have been worse.

A lot worse, Bucky thinks. If Tony hadn’t pulled Steve’s dumb ass out of the line of fire… It doesn’t bare thinking about.

“Tony, thank you,” Bucky says fervently, then his brain catches up. “Jesus, Tony, I’m sorry, I’ll…”

Tony stops him with a hand to his shoulder. “You’re fine,” he says. “It’s fine.”

“I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I swear, but you have to know, you saved Steve’s life today, and I…”

“I know,” Tony interrupts. He ducks his head. “Bucky, we’re…fine. It’s okay.” He seems to stop for a moment, mind wandering off before he comes back and nods. “Yeah, it’s okay. I know you…you mean it. So, we’re okay.”

Bucky blinks at him, not understanding, until he does.

Tony smiles. “I’ll give you guys some space,” he says, and then walks out.

Steve grins at him, loopy as ever. “Makin’ progress,” he slurs.

Bucky has no compunctions against hitting him with a pillow.

***

Bucky eases into it, not wanting to overwhelm Tony or make him change his mind, but he’s not stingy with his praise. It’s not like it’s hard to find things to say about Tony. Tony is brilliant in a million different ways, and brave, and giving, and beautiful. Bucky could wax poetic, were he inclined to do so, about his hair for days. He doesn’t, that might freak Tony out, but it does help ensure he’ll never run out of material.

He hasn’t mentioned the blush and the smiling and the way Tony’s whole posture changes, the softness to it, the way Bucky likes that and feels some sort of visceral pride in making it happen. But he does certainly notice it.

“You want to go out to dinner with me?” He asks, one month almost exactly after Tony gives him permission to say these things.

Tony tilts his head. “Why?”

“Why why?” Bucky asks, confused. “Why wouldn’t I want to take you out?”

“You like this…this teasing me, or whatever you’d call it, call this, what I do, when you say those things, but does that really require dinner?”

Bucky blinks. “I’d call it making you feel good,” he says slowly, then pauses. “It does make you feel good, right?”

Tony blushes at that too, and Bucky takes it as a yes.

“I like making people I like feel good. And dinner–yeah, I wanna take the kind, brilliant, funny, beautiful guy to dinner. Spend an entire meal telling him all those things ‘bout himself. See how much I can get him blushing.”

Tony’s definitely blushing now. Bucky tries to suppress his smile but probably fails. He can’t really find it in himself to care.

“I…have dinner meetings for SI for the next few nights,” Tony admits heavily.

Bucky blinks, not sure if it’s a polite rejection or a regret. “Okay.”

“Do we have to wait until I get through those?”

“We could go to lunch?” Bucky suggests. “Or…you could come here, an’ sit on this couch with me, an’ let me hold you for a bit. You’d fit real nice in my arms, wouldn’t you?”

Tony does fit real nice, especially as soft and relaxed as he is, ducking his head into Bucky’s chest but blush still visible regardless.


End file.
